Silly but technically considered piece in the Inquirer (UK) today in which a reader calculates the money and time it would likely take for the RIAA to actually sue all P2P fileswappers:
She said: "I pulled out my calculator to see just how long it would take the RIAA to sue all 60 million P2P music file traders at a rate of 75 a day. 60,000,000/75 = 800,000 days to subpoena each person or 800,000 days/365 days in a year = 2191.78 years to subpoena each person". Michaela points out that it's unrealistic to suppose that the RIAA will have any money left in 2191 years, and she even wonders whether the trade association will exist then. Plus, she points out, given the rate of tech advancement, it's likely that we'll have moved on to many different types of music media in even a hundred years.
Sharman Networks (Kazaa) lobbyist Philip Corwin in DC more soberly observes, "I would venture that the RIAA strategy is based on the assumption that most of those sued will fold quickly and settle given the extraordinarily disproportionate statutory penalties that can be claimed under copyright law ($30 million for the two copyrights on each of 100 song files worth $99 retail). However, if the attorneys for the sued drag out the proceeding with motions and novel defenses (much less countersuits) the cumulative costs of prosecuting the suits could quickly drain the coffers of even a wealthy trade association."
Link, Discuss (via pho)
